Memorial Stone
by blueflamefreak
Summary: Her guilty secret is to watch him at the memorial stone. [Vague RinKakashiSakura]


It's been a long time since anything was last posted by either Yin or myself. I wanted to do a one-shot Kakashi/Sakura story with Rin in it. I guess it was mainly due to the fact that I had read a really sad story beforehand, and it made me cry. I don't cry very often, that's a given. Please tell me what you think. A/N: I do not own any of the characters in Naruto. I wish I did, but that's a whole different kettle of fish. Enjoy.

* * *

She had caught him next to the memorial stone. None of them had ever seen him there, but they all guessed that was where he headed when he returned from missions, outings and training, bleeding or not.

The first time, she had only watched. Her soft eyes watched his figure, completely oblivious to the rest of the world as he sat, contemplating, thinking, _remembering_. Remembering something that was buried in the past. Remembering the things that he didn't have the courage to let go, that he _couldn't_ let go. He relied on them for his sanity, for his comfort, for his guilt.

It was his fault they died. He wasn't quick enough to save _him_ from the boulder. He wasn't strong enough to save _her_ from the multitudes of enemy nin that waved upon them as they tried to give their team some time to finish the mission. And now he dwelt on the past because it was all he had to cling onto, all that he had left to hold onto tattered memories.

His new team was very much the same. He could see _him_ in the blonde's eyes; he could see _her_ through the determination and dedication as she trained to become a medic. And he could see _himself_ through the eyes of the protégé who seemed as shuttered as his own father taught him.

'_A shinobi is a tool. They must never show emotions.' _These were the rules he learnt by; these were the rules he swore by. It wasn't long before his new team, Team 7, had shown him another way. But he refused them, choosing to stand by and remember the past, the dead who were never going to come back.

He didn't speak once, throughout his entire visit. Not the first time she found him there. She was content to sit and watch him as he sat still and stared at the stone in front of him.

The second time she found him there, it was much like the first time. He never spoke, only sat and stared at names long forgotten by others. Only he would remember them, his precious people, the ones who understood, who never had to ask, who loved him, and he loved them back.

He didn't go to the memorial stone for a week. She would know, she checked every day after their training session with the remaining member of her team. She knew what it was like to loose a team mate, and knew what it was like to kill one. She closed her eyes, denying the tears that threatened to fall. She would cry another day. She would wait for him, so they could cry together, to release their anguish, their frustration, their weakness.

When she saw him next, he was bleeding heavily. Even though the moonlight, she could tell the silver hair was half matted with blood, his vest ripped, his skin torn. Still, he stared calmly at the memorial stone.

She couldn't take it. She walked forward as he continued to be oblivious, ignoring the world for all it was worth just to see _them_ again. He knew he shouldn't try, but he didn't care. He needed to see _them_, they were his _blood._

He felt warmth at his side, his wounds closing up. He closed his mismatched eyes, feeling a sudden jolt of his heart. _They_ were here. _They_ were alive, it was all a dream that _they_ had died, all three of _them_, it was all a dream living through a nightmare of guilt.

He turned and buried his face in the shoulder of his healer, hugging the small frame.

"Rin…" He whispered. Delicate fingers hesitantly wove through his hair, soothing him.

"Kakashi, it's okay." A feminine voice whispered. He jerked backwards. It wasn't her, it didn't sound like _her _voice, it was _too_ _soft_ to be her voice. He stared at the small pink-haired woman in front of him as she wrung her hands together, her emerald green eyes wrought with worry.

He stood shakily, turning to go when she grabbed his arm and spun him around, bringing his back to his original position, his head against her shoulder.

"Please… tell me what happened to them." She murmured against his hair. He could feel her breath on his neck as she clung to him, as if she was afraid to let go. He continued trying to pull away before he gave up, crashing into her as he wrapped his arms around her, almost choking the life out of her.

They stayed like that for a while before he relaxed his grip, holding her lightly. It was a while after that that he began talking, confusion, anger, sadness and an overwhelming loneliness making its way into his broken confession of his childhood.

She clung onto him tighter as he began to sob, tears cascading down her own face as his story unfolded. She had no idea how he had managed to keep it all bottled up for so long. But now he had told her, he had finished with his story, instead just clinging onto her as dawn broke over the horizon. She didn't move, her tears now dried as she continued to cradle the silver-haired man who had locked up so much of his life, so much of himself.

She slowly brought her hands together for a nin jutsu, appearing in her empty house in a puff of smoke. She laid the now-sleeping man down on her bed, but couldn't't get him to let go of her. She gave up and crawled in with him, closing her eyes.

He was first to wake, and slowly stroked her hair, thinking of the similarities and differences between the two kunoichi in his life, both past and present. Rin had, after her death, only brought a longing to see her alive, to see her small but achingly familiar smile as she tried so hard to impress their sensei as well as the other two boys that she protected.

Sakura, on the other hand, had an innocence so rare in a shinobi, it was like a gift, but at the same time a curse. He never knew how she could be so emotionally and psychologically strong, having to deal with the males of her team and the stress of being a female in a male dominated path, having her innocence taken just by spilling blood on those hands that felt so similar to Rin's. Yet he knew she would have it no other way.

She had begun to wake up, emerald eyes remembering the night before. She brought her worried gaze up to his face, searching for anything that could signify another complete breakdown. He didn't know why he did it, but he pulled down his mask, still staring at her seriously. Her eyes widened as she saw his face for the first time, and it certainly wouldn't be her last.

He leant forward, bumping their forehead protectors together, letting a loud clink echo in the next-to silent room. He continued leaning in and kissed her softly, drawing it out for as long as he could.

"I'm sorry for last night." He whispered as he drew away. Sakura shook her head.

"There's no need to be sorry. I've known for a while where you go when you decide you're going to be late, or after a mission. It was only natural to think what you thought after remembering them." She whispered back, smiling a small but so familiar smile. He closed his mismatched eyes momentarily, opening them to see _her._

"Rin…" he whispered, and leant in, kissing her with desperation. He blinked as light brown hair faded into pink. He shifted so she wouldn't see him face. How could he kiss her, Sakura, while thinking of _her_? He sat up, only to be pulled down again, landing on top of the pink-haired woman. She stared seriously up at him before drawing herself up, kissing him passionately. He responded in kind, making a growling noise in the back of his throat.

She pulled away, looking into his mismatched eyes.

"Kakashi, it is alright if you let go of the past. You've held on for too long, at least try to let go." She whispered, emerald orbs searing into him. He looked down at her, not seeing Rin, but _her_. Sakura. _My Sakura… _He thought, his eyes softening.

"I can only try." He whispered back before dropping his head to hers again.

Two blondes watched as their friends kissed each other desperately, clawing at each other's clothes in an obvious need for contact. One grinned before pulling the other away.

"He took his time. I guess he must've… where did they meet each other yesterday again?" One asked, pulling out a sebon before placing it in his mouth.

"At the memorial." The other replied, brilliant blue eyes clouding over.

"And he called her Rin?" Genma asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Yeah. I don't get why though." Naruto contemplated, scratching the back of his head. Genma nodded thoughtfully.

"Don't ask him. He'll tell you when he's ready." He advised the younger male before leaping up onto the rooftops. _Kakashi old buddy, I guess I can finally stop worrying about you._ Genma thought, settling down in front of the memorial stone. It was his turn to remember fallen comrades.

As Kakashi tightly held the tired pink-haired woman next to him, he turned to her window, looking out into the blue sky. If he stared long enough, he could see _them_, they were smiling, crying with laughter as his blonde's sensei ruffled _her_ hair, and grinning at _him_. They were content to wait for their serious, by-the-rules team mate as they laughed and waved down at him.

"_Live, Kakashi. Remember, but don't dwell on the past. Your future awaits…"_ It had sounded like _her_, the wisest in the team, the one who kept him together after _his_ death.

"_Ha! The all-knowing Kakashi finally got a girlfriend! Sensei, you **have** to see this!" _It was _him_. There was no mistaking the glee and mischievous tone in his voice.

"_Yes, Obito, I can see them. It **is** about time. Kakashi… keep these two happy and name your children after them. Hmm… A pink-haired little girl named Rin-chan…"_ His sensei grinned down at him and danced away from _her_ furious fist.

"_Sensei! I can't **believe** you! But then again… a little silver-haired Obito running around…"_ _She_ had laughed, grinning at the red-faced boy behind her

"_Just as long as they have my gift, Rin."_ Was the reply.

"_Kakashi, sleep now. We will wait and watch over you. Don't forget, but do not kill yourself inside for what happened."_ His sensei smiled down happily as he found his eyes beginning to close.

"_We'll be waiting!" _They were _his_ final words as he disappeared with _them_. Kakashi sighed happily, settling down next to his pink-haired woman. His mismatched eyes closed, relishing the image that was his former team, but now feeling satisfied and content that he had finally gotten _their_ approval.

_Owari_

* * *

It's very fluffy and angsty, but I decided to post this because it's been sitting in my 'finished' folder for at least a year now, and it didn't really have a home. R & R, please! 


End file.
